Silvio Piola

Again from the old Laziofever, I think it was originally posted by Jump:

Quote :

Silvio Piola was born in Robbio Lomellina, province of Pavia,on September 29, 1913 and was the most important footbal player in the history of the Italian Footbal.

Piola began his career with Italian club side Pro Vercelli, making his Serie A debut against Bologna on February 16, 1930, scoring 13 goals in his first year, at the age of 17. He went on to score 51 goals in 127 appearances in Serie A for Pro Vercelli.

In 1934, he moved to Lazio, ( also with the “help” of the Regime that had inside the Società a big Laziale like Generale Vaccaro, that same man that avoided the fusion of S.S.Lazio with a new unknown team...) who had been on the receiving end of his first Serie A goal on November 11, 1930. Lazio payed him 250.000 Lire. ( like almost 125 euro of today ...)

Piola become an hero for Laziali and anightmare for riommanisti, fighting in all derbies also with fever or injuried. To remeber a derby, on March 16, 1941, in which he scored 2 goals also if he was injuried and had a bandage around his head....

It was with him that Lazio become to fight against the northern teams to become always more important and in 1937 S.S.Lazio reached the second place, second only after a great Bologna !!

When in 1943, during the II World War, he was sent to the front S.S.Lazio was so sure that he was died that Societa let have some mass said for him, but Piola come back to play again with Lazio bringign the team to the second place in a championship in which were always the richer teams of North to be champions.

A curiosity. Piola had a great hobby and passion: hunting. This fact created a lot of troubles with the President of S.S.Lazio Zenobi. Once happened that the same day that he come in Rome he went to hunt, ( the same day that Lazio had to play ) so that the president sent the goalkeeper of the S.S.Lazio, Mr Blason, to call him. For a miracle Piola didn’t shoot to him, thinking that was only a joke. But it wasn’t so, he was a Lazio player and had to come back in Rome to play footbal that day !

Piola was the Serie A top scorer twice while at Lazio, in 1937 and 1943. After leaving Lazio, he spent war-torn 1944 at Torino, where he scored an amazing 27 goals in just 23 games. Towards the end of the war, he joined Novara. Then, from 1945 to 1947, Piola played for Juventus, before moving back to Novara, where he stayed for seven more seasons.

Piola, for a strange destiny never won the scudetto !

His first game for Italy came against Austria on March 24, 1935, when he also scored his first goal for the team. He was a World Cup winner in 1938, when he scored two of Italy's goals in the 4-2 victory over Hungary. Piola went on to play 34 games for Italy and score 30 goals, a tally that would surely have been greater if not for the interruption caused by World War II. His last international appearance was in 1952, when Italy drew 1-1 with England.

With National Team Piola scored an “historical” goal with an hand to England in 1939 that entered in the legend. He won one Football World Cup (1938),After he left footbal he come back in Vercelli to live and didn’t like to appear in public life. He went only in Rome during the celebration of Scudetto of 1974. Here in the picture with Chinaglia.

And this fact created a legend around him that will become the symbol of the universal footbal with his famous “overhead kick” ( called “alla Piola”, Piola style )Piola is currently the highest goalscorer in Serie A history, with 274 goals, a full 49 goals ahead of anyone else. http://www.calcioitaliano.it/archivio/seriea/topscores.htm

He played 536 (or 537) Serie A games, putting him 4th on the all-time list for appearances in Italy's top flight.He died in Gattinara ( Vercelli ) on October 4th 1996, entering directly in the legend !